


The One Where Eddie Brock Has One (1) Good Day (Fuck You Cates)

by Shadowy_Dumbo_Octopus



Series: Brockin' and Rollin' [4]
Category: Venom (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cuddling & Snuggling, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, FWP - fluff without plot, Flash Thompson is alive, Fluff, If Cates can retcon shit then so can I, Love, Mary Brock has a gf, Mary Brock is alive, Other, Seriously this is fluffier than an angora rabbit, Singing, Soft Symbrock, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, so much love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-13 00:55:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,863
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16882569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shadowy_Dumbo_Octopus/pseuds/Shadowy_Dumbo_Octopus
Summary: Give this man a break, seriously. AU of the 2018 run because it's apparently canonically impossible for him to be happy for more than 15 minutes.





	The One Where Eddie Brock Has One (1) Good Day (Fuck You Cates)

Eddie awoke slowly, consciousness falling over him like a light blanket, pulling him out of a pleasant dream he and his Other shared just like they shared everything else. It was something about hunting and antelopes made purely out of the best chocolate they ever tasted. The details eluded him, snatched away into the depths of their conscious and leaving nothing but a pleasant memory and a craving for sweets.

 **“Good morning, Eddie,”** a beautiful voice chased away any lingering wisps of sleep from their mind. His symbiote. His darling.

He smiled, cracking his eyes open to gaze at the gorgeous, perfect face hovering above him.

“Good morning, darling,” he replied, sitting up to steal a kiss. He liked kissing his Other. The act usually released a fresh flood of phenethylamine from their brain, making both of them feel warm and fuzzy inside. The sensation was also shared and multiplied due to the nature of their connection; his Other felt what he felt, so they experienced his side of the kiss just like he experienced it from both his and their point of view, and so on and so forth. Sometimes all Eddie wanted was to lose himself in a kiss like that, diving into this spiral of sensations until it became impossible to tell which one of them was on which side of the kiss.

Then again, did it really matter?

His Other chuckled.

 **“You think too much, Eddie,”** they planted one last feather-light kiss on his lips before moving away. **“We made you coffee. Drink before it gets cold.”**

Eddie looked around and indeed spotted his favourite mug on the nightstand. Knowing his Other, there was probably more cocoa in there than actual coffee, but that was the opposite of a problem, really.

 _“I love you,”_ he projected into their shared mind as he drank (the temperature was just right for drinking while still warming them up.)

_‘I love you so much.’_

It was these little things that helped one realise that they were in love, really. No grandiose gestures of undying devotion, no flashy proposals. Just these little everyday things. Like making coffee in his favourite mug, making them both laugh with the memory of a cat video they saw that one time, massaging his back after a hard day, or lovingly dragging him to bed at two in the morning because he forgot how words worked and the article he was writing no longer made any sense.

 **“Love you too,”** they replied, nuzzling against his cheek. **“Remember to trim your beard today. Fuzzyyyyyyy~”**

That got a laugh out of him so that they almost inhaled the remaining mocha through their nose. _‘I love you so much my love my darling I've never loved anyone as much as I love you as much as I love us you're the light of my life and there's nothing I wouldn’t do for you every day I thank whatever god who still watches over this disaster of a planet for making our paths cross I love you I love you I lo-’_

“I will,” he replied, setting the empty mug down to untangle their body from the sheets which seemed to conspire against them, bent on trapping them in the warm, soft prison that was their bed until the stars burned out. Not that the idea wasn't tempting, but they had stuff to do.

First, a trip to the bathroom for a shower (and maybe a quickie now that they were there), some beard grooming, and wasting ten minutes in front of a mirror because they got so caught up in staring lovingly at each other that they lost track of time. They were only interrupted by the sound of their stomach rumbling.

To the kitchen, then. Eddie made himself an omelette while his Other emerged once again to put the Tater Tots in the oven and prepare two glasses of chocolate milk for themselves and one of orange juice for him.

As they ate, Eddie checked his messages. There were two from Flash and about fifteen from Dylan. Flash sent them cat memes while Dylan just sent seventeen (now that they counted them again, there were two more) different variations of the “ _LÖÖPS”_ meme in a row.

Dylan lived with his friend Jonathan back in San Francisco. The family took him in after their dad died and Eddie was busy doing god knew what in New York. Dylan knew about the symbiote and would move in with them after he finished school - transferring would be too much hassle. Plus, the kid had friends in there, something Eddie was delighted by and didn't even try to suggest splitting Dylan’s squad up.

They briefly considered moving back to San Fran, but rent seemed to be a bitch in there. Such a bitch, in fact, that they elected to stay in New York, at least for the time being.

“Why are you like this, brøther” they texted back and instead busied themselves with browsing the Internet for the bongo cat meme compilation they wanted to send to Flash in return.

 **“Cats rule the Internet,”** the symbiote noticed as they scrolled through their liked videos on YouTube. **“They're cute.”**

“You're cuter,” Eddie replied even before he finished processing what they said. “I mean yeah, they're funny, cute, and easy to meme about. They used to be worshipped in ancient Egypt, too, so humans seem to just love them no matter what they do.”

**“We should eat a cat.”**

“Now, darling,” he set his phone down. “Remember what happened last time? Hairballs for days and fur stuck in our teeth for weeks. Do you really want a repeat of that?”

Silence.

“Didn't think so,” he finished his breakfast and set the dishes on the coffee table. They would wash them once his Other was done eating. “I could get you some chocolate when we're out today, though.”

That got them to brighten up. **“Marshmallows from a chocolate fountain?”** they asked hopefully.

“Whatever you want.” There was nothing he wouldn't do for them. “As long as it doesn't make us forget to rent a suit again.”

Mary, Eddie's sister, sent them a wedding invite several days’ prior. She had moved to Ireland when Eddie was younger, but they reconnected recently and stayed in contact via Facebook and email. She was marrying her girlfriend of three years, and was wondering if Eddie and his date would be able to make it. She didn't know that his date was an alien, bless her, and Eddie wasn't about to explain it to her until they met face to face. Smaller chance of a catastrophic misunderstanding that way, he reckoned.

Dylan wanted to go too, but he had exams around that time. Poor kid.

After doing the dishes and throwing some clothes on, they left their apartment in search of chocolate and a suit.

 **“You look good in a suit, Eddie,”** the symbiote purred, flipping through their memories. **_“Handsome_ ** **. Ditch the bowtie, though; ties suit you better.”**

Eddie rolled their eyes, not even bothering to hide a smile. He slipped a Bluetooth earpiece on so that he wouldn't get weird looks for making weird faces and occasionally muttering to himself. They didn't remember who suggested it, but the idea was surprisingly effective.

“Only if you help me choose the right colour,” he replied. His darling was a bit sulky at first when he said that he wanted to wear actual clothes for the ceremony, but neither of them could stay upset at the other for long.

 **“Blue brings out your eyes.”** They always liked Eddie's eyes, greyish blue like the sea during a storm. They could stare at them forever, drown in this private sea of theirs and never resurface. They could just float, feeling the currents caress them lovingly, each one brimming with affection greater than anything they ever experienced. Not even with Flash, a man they considered a good friend. No, Eddie was something else.

Eddie was everything.

 _Their_ everything.

Eddie wasn't crying. There was just something in their eye. A speck of dust, an eyelash, maybe. Nope, not crying at all in the middle of the street.

_‘How dare you be so perfect.’_

**“How dare** **_you_ ** **be more perfect.”**

_‘Excuse me, but you're literally the most gorgeous being I ever came into contact with.’_

**“Excluding yourself.”**

_‘You make me a better person, a better being overall. Therefore you're the better one out of us two.’_

**“We are one, so technically there's only one of us.”**

_‘Yeah but you're our better half.’_

**“Nope, you are.”**

_‘You are,’_

**“You are,”**

_‘You are,’_

**“You are,”**

_‘You are,’_

**“You are,”**

_‘You are,’_

**“You are,”**

_‘You are,’_

**“I am,”**

_‘I am,’_

**“Ha! Told you!”**

“GODDAMNIT!” Eddie couldn't help but laugh, adjusting the earpiece. “You win this round, darling.”

 **“We always win,”** they wiggled around somewhere between their ribs, practically radiating satisfaction. **“Resistance is futile. Chocolate fountain on ten o’clock.”**

 _‘Roger that,’_ they stepped into a small but cosy bakery, lining up behind three other people before the counter. Some lady was ordering a birthday cake for her son, and the lady behind the counter was helping her pick decorations.

They weren't in a hurry, so they perused the bakery’s other wares while they waited: some croissants, caramel squares, fifteen different types of pastries, some cakes, bread and buns, ice cream ( **“It's January?!?!?!?”** ) the aforementioned chocolate fountain, and some savoury stuff they weren't in the mood for.

There were also snowballs, the ambrosia of Eddie's childhood. Snowballs were sweet balls of… stuff, baking leftovers mixed with rum, cocoa powder, and whatever else the baker had on hand, all rolled into a ball roughly the size of a tennis ball and sprinkled with coconut flakes. He hasn't even looked at one since he was in college.

His eyes widened. _‘Please tell me you've tried one of these.’_

His Other shrugged mentally, indicating that they had no idea what he was talking about.

Oh god…

That.

Was.

_Unacceptable._

They left the bakery with two cups of chocolate-covered fruits and marshmallows, as well as a box of snowballs. Eddie bought all of them.

“I cannot, _cannot_ believe that you've never tried snowballs!” he still couldn't wrap his mind around such a bizarre fact. Snowballs! The love of his childhood! He and Dylan were obsessed with the stuff when he was younger, though they rarely got to actually try it because money was a bit tight most of the time and their dad was an asshole. The fucker was lucky that he was dead.

They found a bench and sat down as Eddie ate for the two of them and the symbiote flipped through his memories in search of those mysterious so-called snowballs.

“Ah ah ah!~” Eddie stopped them before they got too far. “No spoilers, honey. You're gonna have to experience them for yourself after we're done with the ‘mallows.”

They rolled their eyes at him, emerging from the inside of his sleeve (they shifted into a warm leather jacket before they left the house) to snatch a chocolate-covered strawberry out of the styrofoam cup they were holding. **“Tease.”**

Once both cups were empty and disposed of, Eddie stood up and returned to their search for a suit.

 **“Eddieeeeeeeeeeeeeeee,”** the symbiote all but whined, sneaking a few tendrils towards the box they carried under their arm. **“You promised!”**

Eddie merely smiled. “After we get home, love. I want to see your reaction.”

**“You're such a tease, Eddie!”**

“Isn't that why you love me?”

**“Nope, we love you for your ass.”**

He burst out laughing so hard that they had to stop walking.

**“And your sexy, sexy internal organs.”**

“Darling…”

**“Especially your brain.”**

“Sweetie…”

**“Mmmmmhm, that sexy cerebellum…~”**

“...I'm kinkshaming.”

 **“Our kinks are your kinks, Eddie,”** a memory from the previous night appeared in their mind with photographic quality, **“and anyway, people always say it's what's inside that counts.”**

Okay, he couldn't really argue with that, so they just kept walking, occasionally chuckling and discussing what would be a good wedding gift for Mary. Eddie thought of his marriage with Anne, so long ago that it felt like it was in a whole different life, and tried to remember what sort of stuff they were given. Crockery? Chopping boards? Pillows with their initials stitched on them?

Jess, Mary’s wife-to-be, was a photographer, so perhaps some cheesy personalised photo frames? An album? Mary worked as a chemical engineer, so maybe something sciency. A play on “chemistry” or “bonding”. Or a cutting board with the periodic table etched into it.

 _‘Take away gravity and I'd still fall for you,’_ a thought directed at the symbiote interrupted their train of thought, successfully derailing it and making it crash into a mountain, go up in flames, and lastly explode in a shower of molten metal.

 **“Eddieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!”** Affection flooded their mind as they rose up from the collar to press a kiss to Eddie's jaw. **“You're too sweet, sweeter than chocolate.”**

“I try,” he chuckled and then stopped, their free hand reaching for his phone. The quote was from a song Jess used to propose to his sister, and he was pretty sure that his Other hasn't yet heard it.

It took him a bit to find the earbuds, but upon finally locating them, he quickly typed the song title into his phone, put them on, and carried on walking, singing along under his breath.

**“Eddie, what is this s-”**

_I'll be the spark if you'll be the flame_  
_Start a reaction that can't be contained_  
_Balance your pH by sharing my base_ _  
I'll be your star if you'll be my space._

No wonder Mary said yes, Eddie mused. He almost forgot how adorable the song was.

  
_'Cause there is no distance that I wouldn't go_  
_Through space, time and wormholes my matter would flow_ _  
To the edge of the universe_

  
_I'll be your G, if you will be C_  
_Or I can be A, if you will be T_  
_If there's a mutation I'll fix every base_ _  
Working as your zinc finger nuclease_

 _Just like an atom, don't rip us apart_ _  
_ _Unless you want a big BOOM in my heart_

 _  
_ That part actually fit them quite well.

  
_We can take it fast or really slow_  
_But we can't know with certainty where we'll go_  
_If at first we don't succeed, we'll try two more times_ _  
So our failure's a statistically significant try_

  
_Like an equation, it all works out_ _  
If we balance the sides there's no need to doubt_

  
_This is your science love song_  
_A place to start our chemical bond_  
_A research endeavour_ _  
_ We can write the conclusion together

 _  
_ **“Eddieeeeeee!”**

 

 _Just like the movies I'd steal your heart_  
_But then you'd die... so I won't do that_  
  
_If we broke up I'd be no more_  
_I'd give up H2O for H2SO4_  
_Take away gravity, I'd still fall for you_ _  
Share my last electron in a covalent bond for two_

 _  
_ Two atoms sharing electrons to achieve stability, fitting together like two pieces of a puzzle. If he had to be honest, Eddie was a bit jealous that Jess used the song as a proposal before he had the chance to consider it.

  
_'Cause you're like that angle, A-cute and you're smart_  
_Your lab coat and goggles go straight to my heart_  
_Except that's a lie, cause the heart doesn't feel_  
_When it comes to love the brain seals the deal_  


_“Like my sexy, sexy cerebellum, darling?~”_

  
_This is your science love song_  
_A place to start our chemical bond_  
_A research endeavour_ _  
We can write the conclusion together_

  
_Forget annotations and bibliography  
'Cause you matter to me._

(That was his favourite bit.)

One of them was crying. They weren't sure which one. Possibly both. Most likely both.

 **“We should get married,”** the symbiote said suddenly. **“Officially.”**

Bold of them to assume that Eddie hasn't been secretly considering it. “When we're at the wedding and one of them tosses the bouquet,” he said, wiping their eyes, “the person who catches it will be the one most likely to get married next.”

**“We'll be ready.”**

“Good.”

With that settled, they adjusted their grip on the box of snowballs and carried on walking. Surely there was bound to be some kind of…

A sign reading _“Suits: selling, dry cleaning, rental”_ came into vision as they turned the corner.

Bingo.

The elderly man behind the counter looked up when they entered, bespectacled eyes giving them a quick once-over.

“Good afternoon,” he said carefully. “How may I help you?”

They closed the door behind them to ward off the January chill.

“Good afternoon,” Eddie echoed. “We- um, I need a suit for my sister's wedding in May and I was wondering if I could make a reservation. That and, um, I don't even know my size.” He hasn't worn a suit since his wedding with Anne.

The man raised his eyebrows, undoubtedly surprised that this giant of a man dressed in all black wasn't there to rob him. “I see. Follow me.”

The measuring was over quite quickly, and both Eddie and the man were shocked to find out that there actually was a suit in stock capable of fitting them.

“Thank you,” they tried to smile in a non-threatening way as they paid. “We, ah, _I'll_ come back around the seventh if that's okay.”

The man nodded, scribbling in the calendar on the wall. “Edward Brock”, he muttered as he wrote. “May seventh, number fifty-two. Great!” he beamed, shaking their hand. “You'll have to return it by the twenty-first, but we'll remind you when you come here to pick it up, alright?”

With that done, they grabbed a calling card to be able to find the place later, picked up the box of snowballs from the counter, said goodbye, and left.

**“Lunchtime, Eddie.”**

“Sure thing, love. In the mood for anything in particular?”

**“Steak.”**

They smiled. “Good choice.”

There was a clean-looking restaurant not far away, so they went in, ordered a rare steak with gravy and potatoes, and dug in.

**“Dessert, Eddie?”**

_‘Snowballs, darling, and at home.’_

There was a mental equivalent of a huff, and silence as they finished the meal, paid (plus a 20% tip, of course), and left, heading for their apartment. Those snowballs weren't going to eat themselves after all, were they? Plus, Eddie was pretty sure they were supposed to be stored in a fridge.

Their route home was quicker now that they knew where they were going instead of just wandering around New York. The symbiote fished out the keys from Eddie's pocket and opened the door while Eddie himself was busy telling Dylan off for texting him during a test, and that no, the answer to the question about the definition of hard water was, in fact; not “ice.”

 **“Snowballs, Eddie!”** the symbiote emerged from their side to snap their teeth less than an inch from the box. **“You promised!”**

Eddie chuckled, making their way to the living room and falling on the couch with a contented sigh. “Yeah, yeah, I did. Alright then, here we go.” He opened the box, revealing a dozen coconut-covered treasures. Their eyes began to water as the familiar smell brought back the few happy memories from Eddie's childhood.

“Ready, love?”

**“Always.”**

He picked up one snowball and held it up, allowing his Other to take a testing bite out of it.

To say that they loved it would be an understatement.

An explosion of thoughts, sensations, tastes and textures he had almost forgotten. It was as if somebody made joy into a liquid, triple distilled it, and injected the result directly into their brain.

 **“Eddie! This is wonderful!”** The rest of the snowball practically vanished inside their hungry maw as they chewed with the most delighted expression Eddie has ever seen. **“Delicious! Perfect! Like you if you were a food.”**

Aaawww. Eddie chuckled as he sank his teeth into another snowball, eyes instantly fluttering shut in near ecstasy. God, it felt so good to have these again, especially in the company of his beloved. His darling. The love of his life.

They should really get married sometime, he mused as he sank further into the soft pillows, cocooned by the symbiote’s embrace. He wondered what gifts they'd receive. A new toaster oven? A year's supply of chocolate? Flash already told them that he'd like to be the best man, and laughed when they asked him to specify for whom.

“For both of you!”

They really were lucky to have a friend like him. Once Eddie got over his immature jealousy, they clicked almost instantly. He was a great guy, kind of like a human version of a golden retriever. They would probably kill for him if somebody was stupid enough to even consider hurting him.

That reminded him! He fished out his phone and opened the messenger app.

_ > Hey Flash! Been meaning to ask you for a while. A milkshake bar has opened twenty minutes away from our place and we've been meaning to check it out. Wanna tag along? _

A couple minutes later, a reply.

_ > Hell yeah! Text me the time and place and I'll be there. Nothing and no one can stand between me and a tall strawberry milkshake. _

His Other took over their fingers for a moment.

_ > this thrsday 1  pm . 23 elK strt. dont b  late _

Typing…

_ > I'll be there :D _

They locked the phone with a smile and returned their attention to the snowballs. They should leave some for Flash, come to think of it, now that they were going to meet up.

 **“He'd like them, we think,”** the symbiote quipped as they chewed. Eddie noticed that they had a coconut flake on their lower lip (or at least the space between their teeth and the rest of their face) and kissed it off.

“We'll save him a few, then,” he promised, and yawned. “I'm gonna put them in the fridge and we'll grab a quick power nap, how about that?”

They nodded cheerfully before disappearing back into his shoulder. **“Hide them well. We cannot vouch for our actions.”**

“Duly noted.”

After the snowballs were sufficiently secured, they made their way to the bedroom and, upon reaching the destination, collapsed on the bed with a satisfying squeak from the mattress springs.

Eddie sighed happily, feeling his Other wrap themselves around him in their special version of a hug. It felt sort of like spooning, except they both were the big and little spoon at once.

**“Eddie?”**

He cracked one eye open to see them hovering in front of his face. “Hmm?”

**“I love you, Eddie.”**

He smiled, pressing a kiss between their eyes before his fluttered shut once more. “I love you too, darling. So much.”

 **“Sleep well, darling Eddie. We'll be there when you awaken.”** There was a feather-light touch against his lips, a ghost of a kiss that filled them both with more warmth than anything else that day.

_It was these little things that helped one realise that they were in love._

And just like that, with his whole being overflowing with love and a soft smile on his face, Eddie Brock fell asleep.

**Author's Note:**

> The song is "The Science Love Song" by AsapSCIENCE on YouTube, and snowballs are basically Polish bajaderki. I think that Venom would dig them.
> 
> Cates is 100% welcome to meet me in Tesco's parking lot at 2am tonight for an ass-kicking.


End file.
